"I blame Christine's daftness on you," Erik informed Anthony. The young man turned to him in surprise.
"What? Why?"
"Well obviously she was not thinking when she left the house alone, and I am sure the whole concept of 'not thinking' must run in your family," Erik said. A maid had finally confessed that she had seen Christine leave the house hours before and she had been unattended. When Erik got his hands on her he promised himself that he would strangle her for being such a twit!
"Very mature, Desslar, but I am sure she was running from you," Anthony said. Nadir shook his head.
"You two are worse then bickering children! Your little arguments will not help us find Christine," the Persian informed him. The other two men ignored him. They had been walking through the dark streets of Rome for hours now and they had yet to see any sign of Christine. Erik would never admit it, but he was beginning to get worried.
xXx
"Someone is coming!" Sienna whispered fearfully. Both women looked towards the door as it slowly opened and a man stepped in. Christine stood and faced him, promising herself that she was going to be strong for both she and Sienna no matter what they were faced with.
Dawn had appeared two hours prior and most of the night Christine had told silly stories to Sienna, hoping to take her mind off of their situation. Both women had learned quite a lot about each other.
Christine had found out that Sienna was all alone in Rome. Her father had died a year prior and the man she had been to marry had been forced into marriage with another woman because he had gotten her pregnant. Sienna had admitted softly that she had been heart broken because she had truly been in love with the man and to find out that he had sired another woman's child had almost been too much.
But now they both faced the man who stepped into the room and Christine was hit with an air of familiarity. Something about him seemed...familiar to her in some way, although she could not quite place what that was. He had dark chocolate hair and brilliant blue eyes. On his lean body he wore dark black trousers with matching shirt and evening coat. He appeared to be in his late forties but was still rather handsome even in his mature state.
"Christine...you have grown more beautiful then I ever thought you would be," he said; his voice rich and deep. Christine frowned. How did he know her name? And how dare he talk to her so calmly when both she and Sienna had been kidnapped?
"I beg your pardon, Monsieur, but I do not believe I know you," she said. The man grinned.
"Ah, yes, of course you would not know who I am...Leroy Delauney," he murmured. Christine was once more hit with some kind of recognition.
"Delauney?" she asked. Why did that name sound so familiar to her? She knew she had heard it before...but where...
"My mother..." she whispered. Leroy smiled and nodded.
"I knew you would catch on fast," he said. Christine shook her head.
"My mother's maiden name before she was married was Delauney," Christine whispered. But how was this man related to her mother?
"Indeed...you look just like my beloved Emma," he stated softly.
"How are you related to my mother?" she asked. None of this made any sense. Sienna was watching silently, none of this making any sense to her.
"Come, come now, my dear, surely you see the family resemblance?" Leroy asked. Christine shook her head, wishing he would simply tell her who he was.
"No, Monsieur, I see nothing," she said, although she did, he had her mother's eyes.
"I am your uncle, Christine," Leroy murmured. Christine immediately shook her head. No. Her mother did not have any brothers.
"Your lying, my mother had no brothers. Now I demand that you let me and Mademoiselle De Luca go, you are holding us against our will and I will not have it!" she informed him. Leroy grinned and shook his head.
"Your mother lied to you, she never mentioned me or your grandfather because she believed we had done her wrong," Leroy said.
"Grandfather?" she asked. Her mother had told her that Christine's grandfather had died years prior to her birth. Who was this man and was he telling her the truth, or was it some kind of sick, twisted game?
"If what you are saying is true, then what do you want with me and Mademoiselle De Luca?" Christine asked. Leroy shook his head.
"We do not want you; it is your husband with whom we have a score to settle..."not you
"What ?